The art has long sought a method of repairing disbonded metal interconnection lines on integrated circuits or packages. A number of techniques have been developed, including the vaporization of the damaged portion of the metal by heating with a laser. Unfortunately, prior art repair methods suffer from a drawback that the underlying insulating layer below the metal, typically an organic dielectric such as polyimide, is also U.S. Pat. No. 4,081,653, relies on damage to the underlying insulating film to generate an explosive impetus to the metal. Such damage to the insulator creates a potential for short circuits to connection layers below the damaged metal and presents a significant obstacle to repairs.
A prior art technique used to deposit a film of metal for repairs is illustrated in U S. Pat. No. 4,948,623 and may be used together with the invention disclosed herein.
Many prior art techniques have been devised for the repair of photomasks that rely on selective heating of a small area to induce deposition of a repair metal. Such techniques are not applicable to the problem solved by the present invention because of the heat generated in the laser focal spot.